Jim Reeves on CMPA? No thanks!
As some of you may know, the always-lurking Jim Reeves is a nominee to fill Judge Lacey Collier’s recently-vacated seat on the Community Maritime Park Associates (CMPA) Board of Trustees. That’s right, the same Jim Reeves that completely botched the Hawkshaw Eastside and Avalex deals and promised “affordable” housing in the Aragon project wants to help manage our waterfront park development.
No thanks!
Mr. Reeves, the former state legislator, City Council member, and founder of the infamous Irish Politician’s Club, has little to offer the project aside from a propensity for backroom deals and a host of developer buddies to whom he could steer subcontracts.
Quite frankly, Mr. Reeves and his backwards, good old boy attitude have no place in the Pensacola we and others are working hard to create. It’s bad enough that he spends his time hosting lunches in the IPC meeting room and trying desperately to manipulate our elected officials. We don’t need him making any decisions himself.
The seat will be filled by a vote of the CMPA itself, contingent on approval by the City Council. With Council’s action this week, future appointments to the CMPA will be made by the Council directly.
Progressive Pensacola has spoken to at least one City Council member who plans to oppose the CMPA’s appointee if it is Mr. Reeves; but it shouldn’t even get that far. Let the other members of the CMPA know how you feel.
Email your comments to CMP Administrator Ed Spears at ESpears@ci.pensacola.fl.us. He’ll pass them on to the CMPA board members.
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Why not Jim Reeves? Maritime could be a “one stop shopping” for sub – contractors with all of Jim’s buddies from the “Irish Politicians Club” (IPC)! Remember the fabulous job Jim did for the city on the Hawkshaw Project. We could have had Avalex and App River operating on south ninth ave. today, but because Jim was awarded the project and didn’t make it happen, the jobs have moved to Gulf Breeze. Jim Reeves, Thanks but No Thanks! Why don’t you and D. Baker stay at the IPC and let this community finally thrive and move forward. Ms. Pratt you have been a disappointment.
I posted this on Jamie Page`s PNJ blog-3/9/10
Please CMPA not J R ! Anybody but! Even Bubba !
Derek thanks for the validation .
Is this serious? Jim Reeves has done more for the city of Pensacola than most readers of this joke of a website will ever do cumulatively. I’d focus your anger somewhere else. Anti-elitism for the sake of anti-elitism just looks silly. And even if you disagree with that, Aragon is the crown jewel of Pensacola development, despite whatever basis you have to bemoan it. Perhaps Pensacola should have put a trailer park on the Hawkshaw property? That’d be great for the city…at least it would curb senseless whining like this…
Meagan Benson Pratt- Lois daughter’s idea. It’s an old pensacola tradition, kinda like the Irish Politicians club.
Done more lucrative deals that weren’t what was promised and our city turned a blind eye?
Glad his employee DeSorbo is gone.
I noticed that the moderator changed my posting handle to “Jim Reeves” in the post above. If you are going to misconstrue my anonymity in order to affect the credibility of the statement above, why not just modify or fabricate the content of the statement as well? The offense is the same. That’s not very “progressive,” but it is what one would expect of a self-labeled “progressive” forum.
Oh, and it just occurred to me – representing that Jim Reeves made comment #2 may have unintended legal consequences (especially in the context of the article it followed), so I would either ascertain that Jim Reeves did, in fact, make that statement or revert the handle. Just a suggestion, considering Reeves is an attorney.
Mike Desorbo isn`t gone . Desorbo works for the city for exchange park .
Reeves and Desorbo are like boogers you can`t shake . Who do you think got Desorbo the job, Huh? I`ll bet you a drink @ the IPC. Just joking , you already know. Huh?
Well done. Now the 6 people that read your personal website won’t be misled.
You’re a funny guy. I guess I should take it as a compliment that you feel threatened enough by an opinion piece on my personal website that 6 people read to want to make a comment defending Jim Reeves, considering, you know, that you are just an everyman, and definitely NOT Jim Reeves himself.
“Threat” implies power or fear. This was more like scratching out slanderous graffiti on a bathroom wall, which I am not beneath.
By the way, I’m guessing based on your mention of “unintended legal consequences” and your casual use of words like “slanderous” that you aren’t familiar with how the internet works:
The IP address you are posting from is 174.70.125.220. If the ISP to which that IP address is registered were subpoenaed, that ISP could determine very easily which of its customers was assigned that address at a given time.
Nothing you ever do on the internet is truly anonymous.
I’m not sure what you are trying to prove, but to me that says that you should be careful who you falsely accuse of posting what content, since the author of that content can be verified (to an extent). Which is an excellent point, by the way, so we agree that you should exercise more caution.
Sorry, I confused my prepositions or negated what shouldn’t have been negated; I meant “not above.” Looks like you aren’t the only one issuing a correction today.
Let’s get an accurate reader count I am #7
LOL thanks for the support. As of this comment 98 unique IP addresses have viewed this article since I put it up 3.5 hours ago.
Very interesting…. 98 unique addresses and oddly not much support for J.R. the elitist:
“Elitism is the belief or attitude that those individuals who are considered members of the elite — a select group of people with, intellect, wealth, specialized training or experience, or other distinctive attributes — are those whose views on a matter are to be taken the most seriously or carry the most weight
Elitism may also refer to situations in which an elite individual assumes special privileges and responsibilities in the hope that this arrangement will benefit humanity or themselves”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elitism
98 hits in 4 hours is a good thing? I guess your intended defensive response actually puts into perspective the smallish scale of this website. For fun, we can assume that it is something to be impressed with. I’d guess, however, that the object of the message was more the draw rather than the message itself (excepting the sensational allegations contained therein) or, least of all, the messenger. Of course, I can’t prove that, but I would think that this would be one of your more popular articles, if not your most popular (and commented on)? Shock value always draws a crowd, be it car wrecks, Jersey Shore, or reckless half-truths, so I suppose congratulations are in order for your 98 hits.
By the way, since we touched on flattery earlier, I never thanked you for calling me a funny guy. I’m especially pleased, because with the facial hair you rock, you definitely have a sense of humor.
Brilliant analysis Mike1, by the way. I proved that George W. Bush was a worthless politician the same way with a poll I took at the DNC a few years back.
First of all, that’s unique visitors, not hits, but in any case… Today isn’t an unusually high traffic day. Right now traffic less than it was yesterday and a good deal less than it was late last month during the Steen inquest. BUT the Reeves articles is certainly today’s most-viewed, so I guess I can thank
youhim for that!Hey, wake up and smell the sewer plant! !!!!!!!!
This project has been one gigantic “backroom deal” from day one! Jim Reeves had his little lap dog Mike DeSorbo ramming this through the City Council as far back as December of 2004. It is obvious to anyone with half a brain that “the fix was in” and that the “eliteists” of Pensacola were going to grab the land and the money because, er……well, they just deserved to have it! The City Council pushed through a $100 million “backroom deal” without seeking alternative proposals from competing groups.
If anyone deserves a seat on the CMPA it is Jim Reeves, simply because he deserves the “spoils” of his influence. One additional rotten apple in that barrel won’t make much of a difference anyway!
The backers of the scheme are a virtual Who’s Who of the Irish Politician’s Club. aka Pensacola Chamber of Commerce. The Benson’s, Mort O’Sullivan, Jim Reeves, Jack Nobles, Mike Wiggins, Mike DeSorbo, Miller Caldwell, Ellis Bullock, etc., etc., etc.! The only argument is over who gets which slice of the pie.
The product (a baseball stadium) is autrocious, and the fleecing of the citizens of Pensacola is unforgiveable. ………..Yet, Progressive Pensacola continues to endorse the scheme. If you don’t like the “backroom deals”, stop supporting this crappola!
BTW, make it 99 hits!
In my humble opinion, the Maritime Park is unstoppable. Doesn’t matter who endorses or opposes it at this point. So we might as well work on making the best of it!
In my humble opinion, the Baseball Stadium Scheme was probably unstoppable in December of 2004. It was unstoppable because so many of our citizens were asleep at the wheel. Their main concern at the time was fixing their hurricane damaged homes. They trusted their representative on the city council to look after their interests (they didn’t). They trusted the media to tell the truth (it didn’t).
Making the best of what? A baseball stadium is a baseball stadium. I am sure that we will get the best private skyboxes and V.I.P. parking spaces that our tax dollars can buy. However, if you wanted to get anything close to the Fantasy Rendering, you should have fought against the good-ole-boy “developers” who are looting our city!
In honor of St. Patrick’s Day and Mr. Jim Reeves, can we all put our heads together and make a list of all current members of the IPC? To start the list, I will name a few charter members I know of… Jim Reeves, Charles Carlin, Barry Beroset. Regular members… Mike Wiggins, Dick Baker, Buck Lee, Justin Beck, Joe Buehler, Dr. Ed Meadows, and Jack Nobles just to name a few. John Peacock was a member until he lost his seat on SRIA then was asked to turn in his resignation. Can anyone help add to this list? I think there is about 100 current members.
Add Bo Johnson.
Have to include this line because the site asks for more than just the above.
Add Jim Cronley, Tony Terhaar and Danny Zimmern.
Derek maybe this should be a separate post ?
Add Valentino, Osullivan, Appleyard
Madrina Newcomb (center), Ann Hunt (left) and Pam Caddell (second from left) clown around as Master of Ceremonies and “Man About Town” Danny Zimmern (far right) announces their induction into the Irish Politician’s Club
Paul R. Snider
Ferris Eugene Booker
Just make sure that everyone who decides to bitch about the park never goes up there to eat, drink, do anything once it’s built.
Typical Pensacola- A progressive Web site that doesn’t want any progress, because UH OH – Studer or whoever makes a buck off it. We wouldn’t want that. Instead, let’s continue to complain and gripe ourselves into oblivion and watch Destin and Gulf Shores lap us once more.
Think about home values, about demand for homes and businesses to be here. There’s value in that. But believe me, I know those big, bad rich people are only breathing today to come after the 42 dollars you paid in taxes this year.
I always laugh at the Pensacola’s old reliable ‘big bad developer’ theory. No substance, but if they are rich people, they HAVE to be out to get us and to pull a fast one one EVERYONE.
I know a little about development (obviously not as much as the experts on here) and I can tell you that the developer’s profit for a public project is nickels on the dollar compared to a private one.
But hell, I’m at the point with this city where I’ll give someone a kickback myself if we can get off our dead ass and do something.
And it’s funny — look how wrapped up the hippie contingent is with the IPC. Jesus Christ, it’s 8-10 tables in the back of a local restaurant, not some weekly meeting of the minds. I’d bet $100 that no one who has bitched about the IPC has any knowledge of what it is or has ever been in there. But since it’s an elitist club, then by God, it’s crooked too and they all suck. Good point.
As long as the tinfoil hat wearing conspiracy theorists and perpectual cynics have their way there will be no progress in Pensacola.
As long as the successful are ridiculed for their very success and citizens who chose to get involved in the community are personally attacked with baseless accusations of false motives, backroom deals and rampant corruption this place will be nothing more than it is righ now. A stagnent backwater swamp so many folks here seem to relish rolling around in just so they can feel superior pointing out how dirty everyone around them is. Look in the mirror, go take a shower and then see if maybe you can come back with something constructive to propose.
Why would John Peacock losing his SRIA seat have anything to do him being invited to sit around with a bunch of local guys in the back of a local restaurant?
Yes I will have fries with that and a drink to wash that boloney down.
There you have it folks, the “downtown crowd” on display. I’d bet they even SMELL like the vultures that they are.
Nice sentence. And any smell is better than the weed and doritos around here.
Hey Derek –
Looks like you definitely touched a nerve…always amazing to me how some folks think that because they’re big fish in the very small pond of Pensacola that they (or their benefactors / friends) should somehow be immune to criticism.
I don’t really care who’s on the CMP Board, but everybody who’s whining about this post should grow a pair.
Whiners:
Post some constructive responses, not just anonymous, ad hominem attacks. Demonstrate at least SOME ability to intelligently debate a 20-something and his blog. What are you afraid of?
PLEASE tell me you can at least do that for Jim…for the IPC…for our City…for our Future!
(I’m waiting…..)
[...] Derek Cosson did his best to influence the decision, but Reeves had lobbied the board heavily. Read more AKPC_IDS += "9073,";Popularity: unranked [?]No tags for this [...]
What part was the intelligent debate?
Life may be a box of chocolates, and we’re afraid of what we would get.
Are you saying we should apologize or something, for Derek’s and our responses to the applicant, here it is……
We apologize for living in Pensacola so long that we know the history of the elitist players, the IPC, and the influence of the heavy hitting advertising firms in this town. We should have moved?
We apologize for noticing that the Aragon development promised an affordable housing aspect which helped sell the developer to the council. The affordable housing aspect which never happened. We should have never looked for the Aragon affordable housing.
We apologize for reading about the Hawkshaw rfp with another promised affordable housing component . The rfp that was planned and changed after the rfp award to require the city to donate a street and park for its retention pond and allowed the addition of a partner. It was all granted and the developer bailed. We should never have read about that.
That’s all I have to say about that.
There was an affordable housing element to the Aragon project. I don’t remember how many houses were made available for low-income buyers (and certainly more would have been better, since the alternative seems to be a bunch of expensive vacant lots) but they were there. I believe those homes are located on the northwest side of the project, by the park.